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6 books match the query 'Dark Matter'
Dark Matter of the Mind
The Culturally Articulated UnconsciousDaniel L. Everett
University of Chicago Press, 2016
Everett sketches a blank-slate picture of human cognition that focuses not on what is in the mind but, rather, what the mind is in—namely, culture. He draws on years of field research among the Amazonian people of the Pirahã in order to carefully scrutinize various theories of cognitive instinct, including Noam Chomsky’s foundational concept of universal grammar, Freud’s notions of unconscious forces, Adolf Bastian’s psychic unity of mankind, and works on massive modularity by evolutionary psychologists such as Leda Cosmides, John Tooby, Jerry Fodor, and Steven Pinker. Illuminating unique characteristics of the Pirahã language, he demonstrates just how differently various cultures can make us think and how vital culture is to our cognitive flexibility. Outlining the ways culture and individual psychology operate symbiotically, he posits a Buddhist-like conception of the cultural self as a set of experiences united by various apperceptions, episodic memories, ranked values, knowledge structures, and social roles—and not, in any shape or form, biological instinct.
The result is fascinating portrait of the “dark matter of the mind,” one that shows that our greatest evolutionary adaptation is adaptability itself.
Dark Matter
Art and Politics in the Age of Enterprise CultureGregory Sholette
Pluto Press, 2011
Gregory Sholette, a politically engaged artist, argues that imagination and creativity in the art world originate thrive in the non-commercial sector shut off from prestigious galleries and champagne receptions. This broader creative culture feeds the mainstream with new forms and styles that can be commodified and used to sustain the few artists admitted into the elite.
This dependency, and the advent of inexpensive communication, audio and video technology, has allowed this 'dark matter' of the alternative art world to increasingly subvert the mainstream and intervene politically as both new and old forms of non-capitalist, public art. This book is essential for anyone interested in interventionist art, collectivism, and the political economy of the art world.
Dark Matter
Invisibility in Drama, Theater, and PerformanceAndrew Sofer
University of Michigan Press, 2013
Dark Mattermaps the invisible dimension of theater whose effects are felt everywhere in performance. Examining phenomena such as hallucination, offstage character, offstage action, sexuality, masking, technology, and trauma, Andrew Sofer engagingly illuminates the invisible in different periods of postclassical western theater and drama. He reveals how the invisible continually structures and focuses an audience’s theatrical experience, whether it’s black magic in Doctor Faustus, offstage sex in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, masked women in The Rover, self-consuming bodies in Suddenly Last Summer, or surveillance technology in The Archbishop’s Ceiling. Each discussion pinpoints new and striking facets of drama and performance that escape sight. Taken together, Sofer’s lively case studies illuminate how dark matter is woven into the very fabric of theatrical representation. Written in an accessible style and grounded in theater studies but interdisciplinary by design, Dark Matter will appeal to theater and performance scholars, literary critics, students, and theater practitioners, particularly playwrights and directors.
Fundamentals of Dark Matter
Ignacio Ferreras
University College London, 2025
Fundamentals of Dark Matter provides a comprehensive and accessible introduction to one of the greatest mysteries in astrophysics. Designed for advanced undergraduates and graduate students, this textbook presents the key discoveries that led to the dark matter hypothesis and also fosters critical thinking with thought-provoking “How about…?” questions in each chapter.
Ignacio Ferreras guides readers through the historical challenges in galactic astrophysics and the cosmic microwave background, outlining the evidence that has made dark matter a fundamental component of modern cosmology. The book also explores the latest developments in galaxy formation and the ongoing search for the true nature of dark matter.
Each chapter includes clear learning outcomes and discussion questions, making it an ideal resource for courses in extragalactic astrophysics or cosmology. With its engaging pedagogical approach, Fundamentals of Dark Matter equips students with both the knowledge and the curiosity to explore one of the most dynamic areas of modern astrophysics.
Newspaper Verse
The Dark Matter of Eighteenth-Century English PoetryJohn O'Brien
University of Chicago Press, 0
A study of the popular but forgotten poetry published in eighteenth-century English newspapers and their overlooked influence on the canonical work from the period.
The first book-length study of its kind, Newspaper Verse focuses on poetry published in English-language newspapers during the long eighteenth century, including odes, couplets, news poems, ballads, and elegies by such famous poets as Jonathan Swift, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Alexander Pope, Elizabeth Carter, and Thomas Gray and also verse by lesser-known or anonymous writers. For John O’Brien, these texts constitute something like the dark matter of eighteenth-century letters: the most widely read poetry in the period and yet unincorporated into existing narratives of eighteenth-century English literature. By engaging with these forgotten poems, O’Brien demonstrates how popular media enabled poetry to thrive and recovers their rich influence on the shape of English literary history.
Three Steps to the Universe
From the Sun to Black Holes to the Mystery of Dark MatterDavid Garfinkle and Richard Garfinkle
University of Chicago Press, 2008
The authors begin by inviting readers to step away from the Earth and reconsider our Sun. What we can directly observe of this star is limited to its surface, but with the advent of telescopes and spectroscopy, scientists know more than ever about its physical characteristics, origins, and projected lifetime. From the Sun, the authors journey further out into space to explore black holes. The Garfinkle brothers explain that our understanding of these astronomical oddities began in theory, and growing mathematical and physical evidence has unexpectedly supported it. From black holes, the authors lead us further into the unknown, to the dark matter and energy that pervade our universe, where science teeters on the edge of theory and discovery. Returning from the depths of space, the final section of the book brings the reader back down to Earth for a final look at the practice of science, ending with a practical guide to discerning real science from pseudoscience among the cacophony of print and online scientific sources.
Three Steps to the Universe will reward anyone interested in learning more about the universe around us and shows how scientists uncover its mysteries.